Fire Marshal
Barbara Koffron
Monsoon’s coming.
That has been the theme for the past week on television. This is the second year the monsoon season became
a date certain event (June 15th to September 30th) as opposed to a weather
driven event (three consecutive days where the average dew point is 55 degrees). Monsoon means seasonal change of winds. Instead of dry air from the west, we get
moist air from the southeast. Given the
right conditions we get a lot of wind, a lot of dust and about one-half of our
annual rainfall in an intense few storms.
When the storms hit, television weather crews hit streets in
search of fallen trees, downed power lines, broken windows and collapsed roofs. To prepare for the storms, we recommend that
you survey your property and take action so your home or business isn’t the
site for a breaking news story.
Trim those trees.
Some trees benefit from thinning so they catch less wind and stay
upright. If your trees have grown into
power lines contact S.R.P. or A.P.S. regarding trimming. Don’t do it yourself.
Head to the roof and check the drainage system. Your roof is designed to carry certain loads
such as equipment and people. It is not
designed to hold the additional weight of a lot of water; that’s why your roof
drains are so important. Not a monsoon
season goes by without a fire department response to a roof collapse incident.
Once the roof drains are clear, ask yourself, where does the
water go once it hits the ground? Water
should be diverted away from your building and special equipment such as
generators. However, water, including
rain water, is required to be retained on your property. Flooding your neighbor’s property or the public
street is not acceptable.
If your business depends on a generator for emergency back
up for fire protection equipment or business continuity, ensure that all
required maintenance has been completed and there is adequate fuel on site.
Check your property for items that could blow away in high
wind. If it doesn’t need to be outside,
put it away. If it needs to be out, designate
someone the responsibility for putting it away when storms are near. Air borne items are not only damaged or lost
in storms, they can be dangerous projectiles.
Remember the windows.
Bad storms can be bad news.
Let’s do what we can to make bad storms non-news events.
For more information about fire safety, visit NFPA.
~~Barbara
Koffron, Fire Marshal
